The present invention relates to the use of menthone ketal compounds as flavor ingredients. More particularly, the present invention relates to the use of menthone ketals to enhance flavors in chewing gum and other low moisture consumable items.
Efforts have been undertaken to improve and optimize flavor attributes of consumable items, including chewing gum. Difficulties often arise when altering ingredients in such items. Implementing ingredient changes, even those that involve small amounts of flavor ingredients, may cause variation in other characteristics of the composition. These characteristics include texture, sweetness, processability, and flavor-release attributes.
The aforementioned difficulties are especially true in chewing gum compositions which are complex systems, containing a gum base, bulking and sweetening ingredients, plasticizers, colors, fillers and many other ingredients. Reformulation of these compositions is very costly and time consuming.